SURNAMES IN ITALY

Iapigia

This form is an altered form of the surname Puglisi.

Origin and meaning

The authors agree that this is a surname of ethnic or toponymic origin, linked to the region of Apulia (Puglia). F. Miranda explains that the name of that region would derive from the Latin Apulia, in turn coming from the ancient Greek Iapigia, a territory inhabited in pre-Roman times by the Apuli. The surname would have designated, originally, a first bearer or family nucleus coming from that region. Miranda also notes the possibility that it derives from vanished place names, such as Puglisi in the Cilento, in the Salerno area.

Miranda documents as variants of the surname: Pugliese, diffused in southern Italy and in the Trapani area; Pugliesi, present in Lazio and also in the Trapani area; Puglise, of very scarce appearance; and Pogliese, recorded in the Catania area. The form Puglisi is concentrated mostly in Sicily, where it is attested in all its provinces, with a special presence in the Catania, Messina, Ragusa, Palermo, Syracuse and Agrigento areas.

G. P. Holmes supplies that the first documentary evidence of the surname dates from around 1500, in reference to a "Pugliesi" family in the province of Ragusa.

Variants

Altered forms and derivatives

Geographic distribution: A surname with a little under 3,100 Puglisi families in Italy, of which 2,300 in Sicily; the rest are registered in the other Italian regions, among them, in order, Lombardy, Lazio, Piedmont, Liguria, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Campania, Veneto, Calabria and Apulia. On the island it is attested in all the provinces, in particular in the Catania area (in 53 of the 58 comuni, among them Catania, Misterbianco, Acireale, Gravina di Catania, Aci Sant'Antonio, San Giovanni La Punta, Giarre), Messina (Messina, Francavilla di Sicilia, Fondachelli-Fantina, Lipari, Milazzo, Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, Fiumedinisi), Ragusa (all the comuni of the province, among them Modica, Comiso, Ragusa, Scicli, Santa Croce Camerina, Vittoria), Palermo (Palermo, Gangi, Aliminusa, Monreale, Terrasini, Lascari, Alimena), Syracuse (Syracuse, Rosolini, Avola), Agrigento (Grotte, Sciacca, Santa Margherita di Belice, Raffadali) and the Enna area (Enna, Aidone, Calascibetta, Regalbuto, Centuripe).

📍 You can view how this surname is distributed in Italy: View distribution in Italy (Cognomix)

Comparative analysis based on 2 authors: where they agree, the hypothesis is strengthened; where they differ, the alternative interpretations are presented.

Sources

This entry of the Italian Surname Meanings dictionary is based on the following specialized onomastic sources:

  • Miranda, F. (2013). I cognomi di Regalbuto, Catenanuova e Centuripe. Ginevra Bentivoglio EditoriA.
  • Patti Holmes, G. (2018). Alla scoperta dei cognomi siciliani. Retrieved from https://www.ilsicilia.it